Eucharistic prayer is the heart of the Mass

The eucharistic prayer is the very heart of the Mass, the center and summit of the entire celebration.

In the eucharistic prayer the Last Supper is recounted; the mystery of Christ’s passion, saving death, resurrection and ascension is recalled; the memorial sacrifice of his body and blood is offered to the Father; and the Holy Spirit is invoked to sanctify the gifts and transform those who partake of them into the body of Christ, uniting them with the whole Church of God, living and dead, into one communion of love, service and praise to the glory of the Father.

Dialogue/preface
The dialogue establishes–at the outset–that the eucharistic prayer is prayed in the person of Christ the Lord, who is with the Church, and in the name of the gathered congregation and indeed of the whole Church in heaven and on earth.

All of us are invited to lift up our hearts: that is, to raise and place in God’s presence our entire being, thoughts, memories, emotions and expectations, in grateful attention and anticipation. Lifting up our hearts means transcending the present difficulties and joining the heavenly liturgy, where all our troubles will vanish.

Sanctus acclamation
Sanctus is the Latin word for “holy.” Knowing where the parts of the “holy” come from in Scripture help us reflect on what is going on during that moment.

The phrase “Holy, holy, holy, Lord, God of power and might. Heaven and earth are filled with your glory” relate the worship of God in heaven (Is 6:3; Rv 4:8). The phrase “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna to God in the highest” relates to the worship of God on earth–Jesus the Son of God entering Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, where he celebrated the Last Supper, was crucified, died and rose again from the dead (Mk 11:9-10).

Here we are on earth joining the worship of God in heaven and celebrating that he has chosen to become one of us. This is a song of great praise to God, both for what he has done and is about to do during Mass.

Kneeling
At the end of the “Holy, Holy” we kneel. The posture of kneeling during prayer communicates adoration, something that is given to God alone; repentance for anything that we allow to take our focus off God; and submission to the will of God.

Epiclesis
Epiclesis is a Greek word that means to “invoke upon.” The priest as the person of Christ asks God the father to send his Holy Spirit upon the gifts of bread and wine so that they may become for us the body and blood of our Lord.

There is a second part to the epiclesis that invokes the Spirit again, asking that all who share in the body and blood of Christ may be brought together in unity to themselves become one body, one spirit in Christ. We should not let the richness of this action pass us by–that by receiving the body and blood of Christ we become part of the one body of Christ.

Institution narrative and consecration
The consecration is the moment when the bread and wine become the body and blood of Christ. The priest takes the bread into his hands, repeats what Jesus did and said: “This is my body which is given for you.” The priest, after the elevation of the bread, places it back on the altar and genuflects in adoration of the Lord now present in the sacred species.

He then takes the cup and says the words of institution, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” Then he elevates the chalice, and sets it down on the altar and genuflects in adoration.

How should we, the congregation, respond to this greatest miracle that is taking place before our very eyes? We should acknowledge the Lord’s presence at that sacred moment and when the host is raised, we should contemplate the Lord and then make a simple act of faith silently, in imitation of St. Thomas, “My Lord and My God!”

We will notice the priest genuflecting after he lifts up both the bread and wine. This is our signal to bow solemnly in act of adoration to our Lord who is now entirely present in each of the species and in each of their parts. Christ is thus really and mysteriously made present.

We carry out this command of the Lord by celebrating the memorial of his sacrifice. In so doing, we offer to the Father what he has himself given us: the gifts of his creation, bread and wine, which have become the body and blood of Christ.

Memorial acclamation
The offering of the bread and wine that become the body and blood of Christ during the eucharistic prayer is a presentation of the one sacrifice of Christ on Calvary. By our participation we share in this sacrifice, which is not a “new” sacrifice but a sacrifice that Christ performed when he was both the priest and victim.

The memorial is a part of the eucharistic prayer that recalls to God the father the sacrifice of his son, Jesus, who has ransomed us, and his love for the Son and his love for us.

The mystery of faith
This acclamation proclaims belief in the resurrection of the Lord whose death we have just mystically witnessed. We acknowledged the reality of his death, but we also proclaimed our faith that he is alive and that he will come again.

Intercessions
The Mass is celebrated in union with the whole Church, all who have lived and died in Christ, both in heaven and on earth. There are two places at which the priest stops and allows us to silently include the names of those we wish to pray for personally. The first time occurs before the consecration and is for those who are living whom we wish to pray for. The second time occurs after the consecration and is for those have died whom we wish to remember in prayer.

Doxology
A doxology is a Greek word that means “a word of praise.” In the Mass the doxology–usually sung by the priest–concludes the eucharistic prayer. The words, familiar to all of us are, “Through him, and with him, and in him, O God, almighty Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours, forever and ever. Amen.”

If we reflect upon our great need for a savior and what a great savior we have in Jesus who is now present in the bread and wine, we cannot help but be joyous and thankful as we sing our “amen” as a confirmation of all that the priest has proclaimed on our behalf.